Potpourri for a Wednesday

Your Community Accountability

Watched the Facebook live presentation of Your Community Accountability with Sam and Jon featuring Council Chairman Jim Perry.

Sam Archie claims to be nonpartisan but gives a voice to Perry, a Democrat who seems to always come down on the side of Mayor Robert Restaino every chance he gets.

Tuesday night, they spoke about the Casino funds being sequestered by the city with the theme there was “misinformation being spread on the Internet.”

Reality is Ken Cosentino put together a petition requesting the mayor release funds for the hospital, chamber and railroad museum. He called in and spoke to Archie and Perry who couldn’t do much more than make excuses for the mayor.

The city has received some of the requested money but disbursement law that expired. If the mayor wanted to release funds, he could. The organizations in question are afraid to speak publicly because they fear political retribution from the mayor. Meanwhile, the mayor is playing his cards carefully because the city’s fiscal affairs are, at best, shaky even if they are better than when he took over.

Garbage cans

Another part of the hinge on our garbage can broke this week. I may try and fix it with sheet metal, nuts and bolts. Casellas uses an automated truck which slams cans when it dumps them, leaving the lid to flop hard and break.

A quick walk in my neighborhood revealed 11 of 27 cans I saw at the curb cracked or damaged. When you spread it across the whole city, think about it, replacing all those cans is going to be very expensive. It may even cost as much as $2 million. Beyond vacant property with much owned by the city, and potholes, the deterioration of garbage cans is a big issue.

About that ice and a pontoon

Now it is melting, the ice is going away but it has been a spectacular year for Niagara River ice. It is easy to understand how exploring the ice was a thing just more than 100 years ago.

A piece of the iceboom has been stuck in the ice under the Horseshoe Falls.

A pontoon was removed from above the Bridal Veil Falls in May of 2022. Each section is 3,500-pounds, 30-foot long and 30-inches in diameter. The New York Power Authority is responsible.

For the love of DiCamillos

One of my favorite things in Niagara Falls is DiCamillo’s bakery. No, it’s not the bread. It is arborio rice, biscotti and soup.

I was there last week and was disappointed to see chicken noodle soup as the daily offering. Until I ordered it. It was great. Also, if you like risotto, DiCamillo’s has great imported Italian rice.

Don’t forget Starry Night

If DiCamillo’s is not your speed, try Starry Night cafe at the NACC. It wasn’t DiCamillo’s but the creamy potato soup was great.

Goat Island birds

By this point in the winter, the birds near the Three Sisters Island parking lot on Goat Island have been fed so much they are exceedingly tame. Recently, when we visited, even a downy woodpecker came to Ben’s hand.

Interestingly, the park rangers won’t scold visitors. Unless you are feeding peanuts to the squirrels.

Potholes

Yeah, they are everywhere and it only gets worse from here but it is not worse in Niagara Falls than anywhere else. Just be careful.

Volkswagen

For about 10 years we drove nothing but VWs. I switched to Subaru last winter. Now after putting $3,000 into a turbo for Beth’s 2017 Passat in December, the transmission went. We have been car shopping but for now are making due with one car which will get easier when the weather warms.